159. Cruelty

1. Cruelty is hardness of heart which makes one willing toinflict injurious or excessive punishment. It is a vice whichdirectly opposes the virtue of clemency.

2. Cruelty differs from brutality or savagery in this:cruelty recognizes its victim as one truly deserving punishment andis excessive in inflicting it; savagery or brutality takes inhumanand even bestial delight in the torture it inflicts on a humanbeing, regardless of the guilt or innocence of its victim.

"What good does it do to speak learnedly about the Trinity if, lacking humility, you displease the Trinity? Indeed it is not learning that makes a man holy and just, but a virtuous life makes him pleasing to God. " Thomas á Kempis

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"The greatest glory we can give to God is to do his will in everything." St Alphonsus de Liguori

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"A single act of uniformity with the divine will suffices to make a saint." St Alphonsus de Liguori